• Shuyu Zhang, Changhe Shi, Chengyuan Mao, Bo Song, Haiman Hou, Jun Wu, Xinjing Liu, Haiyang Luo, Shilei Sun, and Yuming Xu.
• Department of Neurology, The first affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, Henan, China.
• Plos One. 2015 Jan 1; 10 (8): e0136468.

BackgroundMultiple system atrophy (MSA) is a neurodegenerative disease, and its pathological hallmark is the accumulation of α-synuclein proteins. Homocysteine (Hcy) is an intermediate amino acid generated during the metabolism of methionine. Hcy may contribute to the pathogenesis of neurodegenerative disorders. Vitamin B12 and folate are cofactors necessary for the methylation of homocysteine.MethodsThis study compared the levels of serum Hcy, vitamin B12 and folate in patients with MSA with those in healthy people to reveal the possible association between MSA and plasma levels of Hcy, vitamin B12 and folate. We enrolled 161 patients with MSA and 161 healthy people in this study. The association between MSA and the levels of Hcy, vitamin B12 and folate were analyzed using binary logistic regression.ResultsThe mean level of Hcy in patients with MSA was significantly higher than that in healthy controls (16.23 ± 8.09 umol/l vs 14.04 ± 4.25 umol/l, p < 0.05). After adjusting for age, sex and medical history, the odds ratio for Hcy was 1.07 (95% CI = 1.01-1.13, p < 0.05) for patients with MSA. Vitamin B12 and folate levels were not significantly different between patients with MSA and controls.ConclusionOur data suggest that higher levels of Hcy may be associated with an increased risk for MSA.

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